Improvement in harvesters



UNITED STATESV PATENT OFFICE.

JOSIAH W. PRENTISS, OF PULTENEY, NEW YORK.

IMPROVEMENT IN HARVESTERS.

Specification forming part of Letters Patent No. 51,211, dated November 28, 1865.

To all whom t't 'may concern:

Beit known that I, JosIAn W. PREN'rrss, of Pulteney, in the county of Steuben and State of New York, have invented a new and useful Improvementin Mowers and Ido hereby declare that the following is a full, clear, and exact description of the construction and operation of the same, reference being had to the annexed drawings making a part of this specification, in which- Figure l is a plan .or top view of the whole improvement in mowers. Fig. 2 is a vertical section of the guards, cutters, clasp, and fingerbar. Fig. 3 is a top view of the guard-hn gers.

The letters of reference refer to the same parts in each figure.

To enable others skilled in the art to make and use my invention, I will proceed to describe its construction and operation.

A is the linger-bar. It is madeany size and length required and of any ordinary shape that is desired. It is a flat bar and is securely fastened to the shoe Bin any permanent manner. To it the guard-fingers are fastened. The outer end may be fastened to a shoe or any other kind of support required.

B is a shoe or support for the inner end of the finger-bar. It should be made of cast-iron and must be made so as to be attached to the other part of the mower. It may be made with a hinge-joint or in any other manner that will suit the kind of mower to which it may be applied.

C is one of a series of guard-lingers. They may be riveted to the linger-bar. They are made as shown in Figs. 2 and 3. At the part forward of the iinger-bar they have a shoulder about half the thickness of the finger-bar,

and at each side next to the linger-bar is a projection large enough to extend from one to the other and allow the lower cutter-bar to lie upon them. The upper part extends backward to near the finger-bar, and must be rabbeted underneath about the thickness of the upper cutter-bar, so as to hold the cutter-bar in place. The upper and lower parts must be far enough apart to allow the cutters to move freely with the cutters E between them. At the forward end of the opening is a place iitted to receive and hold the forward end of the cutters E.

D is a clasp-bar the same in length as the cutter-bar. It is m ade to keep the upper cutterbar in place when the other means are not used, also to hold the cutters E. The under side is grooved across it to the depth of onehalf the thickness of the cutiersE. The grooves must be made to receive and hold the cutters. Between each groove and the end or another groove there is a hole for a screw to hold it down with so that by loosening the screws a little any one or all of the cutters E may be withdrawn with little trouble when they require sharpening.

E is one of a series of cutters that are placed between the reciprocating cutters. They may be made with a plain or sickle edge, or they may be made of two pieces of steel pinned togeiher and beveled to an edge on the surfaces that come together; but it is better to have some of each kind to suit the various kinds of work to be done. They must be made wide enough to extend beyond the line of the sides of the guard-fin gers. Each end is made alike, so that when one end gets dull the other end ,may be used. They are held in place by their connection with the guards at the forward end. The rear end is held by the clasp D, and may be readily removed by loosing the screws that hold the bar in place, without removing the screws. The use of these cutters is to providea mower with more cutting-edge, so that they may be used longer without sharpening and do their work with less power.

F and F are links that are fastened to a turning pin or pivot at the rear end. The forward end is pivoted to the cutter-bar, as shown in Fig. l. Their use is to give a vibratory 1no tion to the cutter-bar and thus give a drawing stroke to the cutters.

Gr isa journal-box. Itis fastened to the shoe, as shown in Fig. l. It must be made high enough in the middle to hold the arm I, and allow the cutter-bars to be withdrawn undern neath the arm.

H is a connection that is iitted on the pivot ofthe arm I. It is itted to a square part of the pivot, so that it may be placed on the pivot to suit any kind of mower to which my im provenient may be applied.

I is an oscillating arm. Itis fastened to the lower end of the pivot that passes through the box G, as shown by dotted lines in Fig. l, and The stationary cutters E, When made and is made to receive one end of the connections used as specified, in connection with clasp-bar J J, that conneetit to the eutrer-bars,as shown D, that holds them, applied as set forth. in Fig. l.

Having thus clearly described my mprove- J. W. PRENTISS. ment, what I claim as new. and desire to se- Witnesses: cure by Letters Potent of the United States, JOHN L. LEWIS,

is- W. S. OLIVER. 

